Banaswadi station: only tracks, no platforms

Banaswadi station: only tracks, no platforms
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: Just a few minutes from Namma Metro’s Byappanahalli depot stands the ancient station of Banaswadi — a ramshackle ill-lit area with incomplete platforms and broken walls. It needs some urgent attention.
In recent times, passenger traffic here has increased by 40-60%, say railway staffers. It is the preferred stop for many passengers chugging in from Chennai and Kochuveli, and those hopping off trains going towards Yeshwantpur and K R Puram.
A spot survey shows that at least three or four bogies of the train stop well away from any kind of platform. There is panic and chaos during those few seconds. Children, women and senior citizens struggle down, jumping and sliding with their luggage. It’s worse at night, as there is no proper lighting either.
The huge vacant land all along is littered with garbage, where stray dogs feast. There’s absolutely nobody to stop trespassers and anyone can ride over the tracks anytime, even when the train is seconds away. Many points here serve as short-cuts to surrounding areas like Sevanagar and Bharatinagar. Incidentally, few months ago, a trespasser was seriously injured on the tracks here.
According to station staff, work is in progress on both platforms, but no one knows when it will be complete. There are all of two platforms — one passes off for a regular platform, the other side is an uneven, sandy stretch.
Work is on at the station entrance to set up more counters. But what’s the point of having platform ticket counters when there are no proper platforms and even walls to enclose the station?